Revelation 9:1. I saw a star fall from heaven— Stars, in the language of prophesy, signify angels; see ch. Revelation 1:20. The angels of the heavenly host, as well as the angels or bishops of the churches, seem to be called stars in scripture; as when at the creation, the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy, Job 38:7 . In like manner, when the abyss or bottomless pit is shut up, it is represented in this prophesy, as done by an angel coming from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit. These expressions are so nearly the same, as well as upon the same subject, that they may be well taken in the same sense, and so used to explain each other. The expression, then, a star is fallen from heaven, or an angel come down from heaven, with a key to open the bottomless pit, seems naturally to mean the permission of the divine Providence for these evil and calamitous events, which are described to follow from opening the bottomless pit, which could not have happened but by the permission of the divine Providence, and according to the wise and holy orders of the divine government. For the providence of God could as surely have prevented the temptations of Satan, and the powers of darkness, as if Satan and his angels had been fast locked up and secured in a safe prison; so that he sends an angel, his messenger, with the key of the bottomless pit, to open the prison, and permit them to go out;—to teach, that they can only act so far as they have leave and permission, and can always be restrained and shut up again at the good pleasure of the supreme Governor of the world. The abyss, or bottomless pit, is explained in this prophesy itself to be that place where the devil and Satan are shut up, that they should not deceive the nations: ch. Revelation 20:1-3. The abyss seems also to be used in the same sense, when the devils besought Christ that he would not command them to go out into the deep; αβυσσον : and Grotius observes, that this abyss is the same with what St. Peter calls hell, or Tartarus, 2Pe 2:4 . Now this prison of Satan and of his angels bya righteous judgment of God is permitted to be opened for the just punishment of apostate churches, who would not repent of their evil works. We may therefore say, with the Bishop of Meaux, "Behold, something more terrible than we have hitherto seen; hell opens, and the devil appears, followed by an army of a stranger figure than St. John has any where else described:" And we may observe from others, that this great temptation of the faithful was to be with the united force of false doctrine and persecution. Hell, in this sense, does not open of itself; it is always some false teacher that opens it; by which means Satan is loosed, and deceives the nations. Instead of the bottomless pit, some render it the well of the abyss, or bottomless gulph. Mahomet is the star, and the Saracens the locusts.

Revelation 9:2. There arose a smoke out of the pit,— As a great smoke hinders the sight, so do errors the understanding. St. John keeps to the allegory, says Grotius: a smoke takes from us the sight of the stars. Smoke, especially when proceeding from a fierce fire, is also a representation of devastation. Thus when Abraham beheld the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the smoke of the country went up, as the smoke of a furnace. The great displeasure of God is represented by the same figurative expressions of smoke and fire, Psa_18:7-8 Psalms 18:7-8>.

Revelation 9:3. Locusts upon the earth:— See Jdg_6:5 . Joe_1:6 . Bishop Newton interprets this part of the prophesy as follows: "At the sounding of the fifth trumpet, a star fallen from heaven, meaning the impostor Mohammed, opened the bottomless pit, and there arose a smoke out of the pit, and the sun and the air were darkened by it; that is, a false religion was set up, which filled the world with darkness and error; and swarms of Saracens, or Arabian locusts, overspread the earth. A false prophet is very fitly typified by a blazing star, or meteor. The Arabians likewise are properly compared to locusts, not only because numerous armies frequently are so; but because swarms of locusts often arise from Arabia. In the plagues of Egypt, to which constant allusion is made in thesetrumpets, the locusts are brought by an east wind (swordsearcher://bible/Exo_10:13 .), that is, from Arabia, which lay eastward of Egypt; and in the Book of Judges, ch. Revelation 7:12. the people of Arabia are compared to locusts or grasshoppers for multitude; for, in the original, the word for both is the same. As the natural locusts are bred in pits and holes of the earth, so these mystical locusts are truly infernal, and proceed with the smoke from the bottomless pit.

Revelation 9:4. It was commanded them that they should, &c.— This verse demonstrates, that these were not natural, but symbolical locusts. The like injunctions were given to the Arabian soldiers. When Yezid marched to invade Syria, Abubeker charged him expressly not to destroy the palm-trees, nor to burn any fields of corn, nor to cut down fruit-trees, nor do mischief to any cattle, unless what theykilled for eating. Their commission is, to hurt only those men who have not the seal of God in their foreheads; that is, those who are not the true servants of God, but are corrupt or idolatrous Christians. Now from history it appears, that in those countries where the Saracens extended their conquests, the Christians so called were generally guilty of idolatry in the worshipping of saints, if not of images; and it was the pretence of Mohammed and his followers, to chastise them for it, and to re-establish the unity of the Godhead. The parts which remained most free from the general infection were Savoyand Piedmont; and it is very memorable, that, when the Saracens approached these parts, they were defeated with great slaughter by the famous Charles Martel, in several engagements.

Revelation 9:12. One woe is past, &c.— This is added, not only to distinguish the woes, and to mark more strongly each period; but also to suggest, that some time would intervene between this first woe of the Arabian locusts, and the next of the Euphratean horsemen. The similitude between the locusts and Arabians, is indeed so very great, that it cannot fail of striking every curious observer; and a farther resemblance is noted by Mr. Daubuz, "That there hath happened in the extent of this torment a coincidence of the event with the nature of the locusts. The Saracens have made inroads into all those parts of Christendom where the natural locusts are wont to be seen and known to do mischief, and no where else; and that too in the same proportion. Where the locusts are seldom seen, there the Saracens stayed little; where the natural locusts are often seen, there the Saracens abode most; and where they bred most, there the Saracens had their beginning and greatest power. This may be easily verified by history."